With Lucknow-based home cook Sachin Khatwani’s elimination from Masterchef India 2023 yesterday, Kamaldeep Kaur, Aruna Vijay, Nayanjyoti Saikia, Santa Sarmah, Suvarna Bagul and Gurkirat Singh have become the six finalists of the cooking reality show, which airs weeknights at 9pm on Sony Entertainment Television and SonyLIV.

Sachin was eliminated after he failed to live up to the expectations of the judges — celebrity chefs Vikas Khanna, Ranveer Brar and Garima Arora — during the ‘dessert special challenge’. Sachin had prepared a ‘very berry chocolate cake’ for the task. Renowned pastry chef Pooja Dhingra appeared as a special guest in this episode.

“I have learnt so many things from the MasterChef kitchen. I will also take away a lot of things. When I came here a few months ago, I didn’t know anyone. Now that I’m leaving, I have made a family here,” said Sachin after his exit from the show.

The eliminated contestant lauded the judges for being great mentors and received praises from them in turn. They also appreciated Sachin for the crab xec xec and poi bhatura that he had prepared earlier on the show.

Chef Vikas Khanna assured the contestant that a lot of chefs and many kitchens were waiting for him, while Ranveer Brar thanked Sachin for leaving a lot of beautiful memories in the kitchen. “He never accepted defeat and always demonstrated that a difficult challenge or situation is never a problem,” he said.

“You came to his kitchen as a young, novice cook and learnt so much during all these weeks. And learnt it so quickly. You are a fast learner. Use it to your advantage,” chef Garima Arora said while praising Sachin.